How to Downgrade Back to iOS 5

Did you upgrade to iOS 6 with the thoughts that you’d have a better mobile experience on your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch, but didn’t? It's Maps, isn't it? Luckily, you can downgrade your device with ease back to iOS 5.1.1, and update again when Apple's released a fix for some of the features that are bugging you. Continue reading, and we’ll show you how to get your iOS 6 device back to working on iOS 5.

Note: Some readers in the comments below have reported having issues during the downgrade process. When this article was written, it was assumed that all devices would follow the same process, but this process only applies to non-A4-powered devices, which is only the iPhone 3GS. If you have an A4-powered device, you will need to follow the steps here in order to downgrade your iOS 6 device back to iOS 5. This process, however, will require your device to have been jailbroken in the past.

1. Download Your IPSW

To restore, you’ll need to download the IPSW file of iOS 5.1.1 from Apple’s servers to restore your device. Click on one of the links below to download your specific version of iOS 5.1.1:

2. Back Up

Before proceeding, back up your device to either iCloud or iTunes. Back up manually to iCloud by navigating to Settings > iCloud > Storage & Backup and choosing “Back Up Now.” Back up in iTunes by right-clicking your device in the sidebar and selecting “Back Up Now.”

3. Restore in iTunes

After you’ve downloaded the IPSW file and backed up your device, then it’s time to perform the restore in iTunes.

To do this, hold down the Option key while clicking on the “Restore” button. A Finder file selection dialog will appear. Select the IPSW file that you just downloaded, and then click the “Open” button.